Police Take Wrong Man to Jail
by Drew Mackie
In an unusual end to typical post-Thanksgiving dinner
activities, 78-year-old Santa Barbara resident David Wass spent the
night in jail. In Wass’s view, he merely emerged from his apartment
to investigate a gunshot, then ended up detained under suspicion of
being the shooter. Now, Wass is preparing a lawsuit against the
police department for false arrest. Police spokesperson Lt. Paul
McCaffrey, however, claims the arresting officers acted in
accordance with proper police procedure. “We treated this matter
very seriously,” McCaffrey said. “A lot of work went into getting
to the truth of this matter.”
At approximately 9 p.m. on November 23, Wass was at his home on
Oceano Avenue when he heard a discussion among neighbors escalate
into an argument. The exchange ended with a gunshot, and Wass said
he decided to check to see if someone had been seriously injured.
“I became very concerned that there could be somebody dying at the
curb,” he said. Upon leaving his apartment, however, Wass was
ordered to stop — twice. “I didn’t stop at the first sound because
I didn’t know who I might be facing when I turned around,” he said.
The party approaching consisted of four police officers, who
questioned Wass. What Wass did not initially realize — and what
police reports would eventually reveal — is that Wass matched the
description of the man who actually had fired a gunshot. “I told
them they were making a mistake,” he said. “And I told them ‘And
you guys want a raise?’”